The short answer
ChatGPT Free, OpenAI's no-cost plan, gives unlimited text chats within abuse guardrails, plus limited uploads, image creation, voice, deep research and memory. Since October 2026 it runs on GPT-6 Luna, with a quick-answer context window of 27K tokens, about 12 pages. To use it well, switch off Improve the model for everyone under Settings, Data controls, use temporary chats for sensitive questions, and feed long documents in sections.
What you need before you start
- An account you create at chatgpt.com or in the app. Use a personal address for personal use, and check your employer's rules before you use a personal account for work.
- A device. ChatGPT runs in a browser and in apps for iOS, Android, macOS and Windows. ChatGPT Work, the part that builds documents and spreadsheets, is only available in the desktop app on the free plan.
- Five minutes for settings. The most important step on the free plan is a privacy switch, and it is on by default.
Know what you are getting. OpenAI's pricing page lists unlimited text chats on Free, subject to abuse guardrails, with limited file uploads, image creation, voice, deep research, memory, Codex and ChatGPT Work. Since 8 October 2026 the free plan runs on GPT-6 Luna in the Chat tab, the same model Go users get. Paid Plus, Pro, Business and Enterprise users get GPT-6 Sol in the Chat tab instead. The free plan's quick-answer context window is listed at 27K tokens, which OpenAI estimates at roughly 12 pages of input. That one number explains most of what the free plan can and cannot do.
How to set up ChatGPT Free, step by step
- Create the account. Go to chatgpt.com or install the official ChatGPT app from OpenAI, and sign up.
- Switch off training if you want to. On personal Free, Go, Plus and Pro accounts, chats can be used to train OpenAI's models by default. On the web, open the account menu, then Settings, then Data controls, and turn off Improve the model for everyone. In the iOS or Android app, open the sidebar, tap your profile icon, then Settings, then Data controls. Voice has its own separate control in the same area, and thumbs up or down feedback can still be used for training even with the switch off.
- Use a temporary chat for anything sensitive. A temporary chat is not saved in your history, does not create or update memories and is not used for training, though OpenAI may keep it for up to 30 days for safety. By default it is not personalised, so it ignores your memories and custom instructions unless you choose a personalised temporary chat when you start it.
- Lock private chats if others use your device. Since 20 October 2026, locked chats let you hide chats behind a 4-digit PIN on Free, Go, Plus and Pro.
- Add the free extras you will actually use. Since 17 September 2026, ChatGPT for Word works on every plan, Free included. Since 27 October 2026, the iCloud Mail and iCloud Calendar plugins are available on all plans on the web, the desktop app and iOS. Connect one account at a time and only what you are comfortable sharing.
- Turn on study mode when you are learning. OpenAI's pricing page lists study mode on every plan, including Free. It works through a topic with you instead of handing you the answer.
- Write prompts that fit the small window. Give the task, the audience, the format and the length in one message, and paste only the part of a document you need. See how to write a good prompt.
Worked example: summarising a long report on the free plan
Say you have a 40-page industry report and need a one-page brief for your manager. On Free, uploading the whole file and asking "summarise this" is the most common way to get a thin, generic answer, because 40 pages is well beyond the roughly 12 pages the quick-answer window holds and uploads are limited.
Do it in three passes instead:
- Paste the executive summary and the table of contents, and ask ChatGPT which three sections matter most for your purpose, for example "a pricing decision for a 20-person agency".
- Paste those sections one at a time. For each, ask for five bullet points with the page number and any figures quoted exactly.
- Paste the three sets of bullets back into one message and ask for a one-page brief: the main finding, three implications for your team, and two questions to raise.
Then check every number against the report itself. This takes ten minutes, uses three or four messages, and the brief is grounded in the text rather than in the model's general knowledge. The same method works for contracts, transcripts and long email threads.
What the free plan does well, and where it runs out
ChatGPT Free is the most generous free assistant for everyday chat, which is why it is our pick in the best free AI tools. It handles drafting, rewriting, explaining, brainstorming and short-file questions all day without a hard cap on text chats.
It runs out in four places. Long documents get cut short by the context window. Uploads, image creation, voice and deep research are limited, so save them for jobs where they matter. The newest models, GPT-6.1 Sol and GPT-6.1 Terra, live in ChatGPT Work and Codex on paid plans, not on Free. And ChatGPT Work on Free is limited and desktop-only.
If you hit limits every day, the next step up is Go, which OpenAI describes as more messages with tools, uploads, images, voice and longer memory than Free. Go still uses GPT-6 Luna and may include ads. Plus moves you to GPT-6 Sol, expanded deep research and ChatGPT Work on desktop, web and mobile. Check current prices on OpenAI's pricing page.
Common mistakes and how to fix them
- Leaving training on with work material. Fix: switch off Improve the model for everyone in Data controls, and do not paste client data into a personal account at all. Read how to keep your data private in AI tools.
- Thinking the opt-out covers feedback. Thumbs up or down ratings can still be used for training. Fix: skip the rating buttons on sensitive chats.
- Uploading everything at once. Fix: paste the relevant section, or work section by section as in the example above.
- Believing a confident answer. Fix: ask it to search the web and give a source link and date for every claim, then open the links. See how to check if AI is telling the truth.
- Spending limited features on small jobs. Deep research and image creation are limited on Free. Fix: use a normal chat for quick questions and keep deep research for a question that needs a sourced report.
- Expecting the same answers as a paid friend. Two people can type the same prompt and be answered by different models. That is not a bug, it is the plan.
Which free AI to use instead, or as well
ChatGPT Free is the right default for most people. Two other free plans are worth knowing:
- Google's Gemini packs more tools into its free plan, including Deep Research, Gemini Live voice, Canvas and Gemini Notebook, but since 9 October 2026 most free prompts go to the lightest model, Flash-Lite. Pick it if you live in Gmail and Google Docs. See the Gemini guide and ChatGPT vs Gemini.
- Anthropic's Claude Free gives you Claude Sonnet and Claude Haiku, with Claude Docs, Slides and Design, up to 5 Projects and limits that reset every five hours with a weekly cap. Pick it for careful writing. See the Claude guide and ChatGPT vs Claude.
For more options, read free ChatGPT alternatives, the full ChatGPT guide, or browse ready-made prompt sets for teams in Yuzoki kits.
Prompts to copy
Pick the sections that matter
Here is the table of contents and executive summary of a report: [paste]. I need it for [purpose, e.g. a pricing decision for a 20-person agency]. Which three sections should I read closely, and why? Answer in five lines or fewer.
You get: A short list of what to paste next, so you stay inside the free context window
Summarise one section with the evidence
Summarise this section in five bullet points for [audience]. Quote every figure exactly, give the page number for each point, and add one line on anything that seems unclear or contradictory. [paste section]
You get: Checkable bullet points you can combine into a brief
Turn notes into a one-page brief
Combine these notes into a one-page brief for [manager]: the main finding in two sentences, three implications for [team], and two questions to raise in our next meeting. Plain English, no jargon. [paste notes]
You get: A finished brief from your own notes
Research with sources you can open
Search the web for [topic] and give me the five most important current facts. Put a source link and its date next to each one, and say plainly if you could not confirm something.
You get: A sourced overview you can verify in minutes
Learn it, do not just get it
I want to understand [concept] well enough to explain it to a colleague. Ask me one question at a time to find what I already know, then explain the gaps with one everyday example each. Finish with a three-question check.
You get: A short tutoring session that works well with study mode